Search Techniques
Here are standard search tools. You may find variations between databases in terms of the symbols to use and how they behave when executing a search. Check a database's documentation for details about searching and search examples.
TIP: look for items that cite the item you find interesting. Those citing items can be very relevant to your research as well!
Background Information Sources
Background information sources can: (1) help you understand the main concepts or jargon you encounter in your research; (2) give you a mental map of your topic.
Scroll through the tabs in this box to see various resources related to finding background information.
For ideas about additional resources to consult, see the subject library guides for ideas about background information sources, or check with the science librarian.
Books and Ebooks can be a great source of background information.o discover books and ebooks, go to ASA, the search engine near the top of the library homepage at http://library.lehigh.edu. Simplified version is below.
TIPS:
- To limit to ebooks, see the filters for ebooks, and also "electronic", on the right of the search results. Print books will have the location in the library indicated. Lehigh uses the Dewey Decimal System.
- When searching, sort the results by "Date Descending". That way the most recent items will come to the top.
- Handbooks can be useful. They may contain good articles that provide an overview of your topic.
- If there is a book that Lehigh does not have, you can order them from other librariies using PALCI or ILLiad, available here. Start with Palci. You can find books that Lehigh does not own by going to WorldCat, which comes in two flavors.
Watch the video below to learn more about searching in ASA: the online library catalog.
- Elsevier encyclopediasClick on the URL then click on the magnifying glass at the top (to the right of the text "journals and books". A box will open where you can search by your topic. Then, on the left, you can restrict by "Article type". There, select Encyclopedia.
- Access Science This link opens in a new windowOnline encyclopedia and dictionary for the sciences. Includes biographies, images and animations, and videos.
- eLS This link opens in a new windowFormerly Encyclopedia of Life Sciences, this resource from Wiley contains over 5000 peer-reviewed articles. Monthly-updating.
- Treatise on Geochemistry This link opens in a new windowEncyclopedic resource providing coverage of a wide range of areas, for example, the cust, mantle and core; the atmosphere; oceans, grounwater, sediments,biogeochemistry, planets, and much more.
- Encyclopedia of Volcanoes"Written by nearly 100 world experts in volcanology."
- Google Advanced SearchUse the Google Advanced Search to do a precise search. Make sure to evaluate critically the webpages that come up for reliability. Likely you will of course come across Wikipedia articles, which can serve as a stepping stone to discovering academic resources. *Often Wikipedia has useful links listed at the bottom of an article.* You will of course have to confirm independently information you find in Wikipedia.
Below on this page is a listing of some government resources. This is not a complete list by any means.
TIPS
- Do a google search on advanced google search. In the interface, you can indicate that you want to search the .gov domain, that is web addresses containing .gov, to find government resources.
- Try out science.gov
SOME GOVERNMENT RESOURCES
- Science.govSearches large number of federal agency databases and websites. Provides U.S. government science information.
Article Databases
See the distinction between scholarly vs. popular, under the Evaluating Sources page.
ACADEMIC SEARCH ULTIMATE
Put in your search statement and then scroll down and select these options under Publication Type: "Periodical or "Newspaper". (TIP: you might find some scholarly journal articles come up if you use "Periodical". Ignore those; just look for popular magazines and newspapers in the results!) You can bring up journal articles in this database as well but won't need to do so for the exercise at this point.
Sort results by "Date Newest".
- Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new windowIndexes, abstracts and provides selective full-text for a broad spectrum of magazines, journals and newspapers.
RESEARCH LIBRARY
You can search for popular articles, specifically magazines and newspaper articles, in this database by putting in your search terms and then scrolling down to "Source Type" and clicking "Magazines" and "Newspapers". (You can also search for scholarly articles in this database, but for the exercise just use it for popular articles at this point.)
Some search tips here.
After running search, sort by "Most Recent First".
- Research Library This link opens in a new windowIndexes, abstracts and provides selective full-text for a broad spectrum of magazines, journals and newspapers.
NEWSPAPER SOURCES
1. Elsevier: News category
Click here. Click on the magnifying glass at the top to the right of the text "journals and books". A box will open where you can search by your topic. Run your search. On the left, at "Article type", click "show more" and scroll down to select news.
2. Or, browse the list of newspaper databases here to find one's appropriate for your work in the class.
3. See the news link near the top in the Advanced Google search results.
ARTICLE SEARCH
View the video below for tips on searching for articles.
Below are some databases to help you locate scholarly articles. Some of the databases listed overlap with the ones listed in the other tab, which focuses on popular articles. So some databases are multi-purpose! Figure out how to limit to scholarly journal articles in the first two databases below, which also have popular articles. For help, ask Brian Simboli.
Remember that a special type of scholarly article consists of "review articles". In Web of Science, you can run a search and then restrict to review articles on the left of the search results. Annual Reviews consists of just review articles. (Don't mix up "peer review" with "review article": different concepts! The first describes how scholarly articles are usually evaluated, namely by "peers" a.k.a. experts. The second is a special *type* of scholarly article that gives a high level view of the literature.)
With any database, sort by most recent articles.
- Research Library This link opens in a new windowIndexes, abstracts and provides selective full-text for a broad spectrum of magazines, journals and newspapers.
- Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new windowIndexes, abstracts and provides selective full-text for a broad spectrum of magazines, journals and newspapers.
- Web of Science This link opens in a new windowHelps find current articles that cite earlier work. Covers STEM, social sciences, & arts and humanities. Has an emerging sources citation index. Useful for identifying review articles Note: Web of Science generally does not include conference proceedings in search results.
- GeoRef This link opens in a new windowGeosciences database covering journals, books, maps, government reports, conference papers, theses and dissertations. Has "GeoRef in Process", which includes references possibly not yet indexed or finalized.
- Annual Reviews Online This link opens in a new windowSuite of journals in science, engineering, and social sciences publishing only review articles, which provide extensive overviews of current research.
Accessing Full Text
If you are in a database and find an article citation without a link to full text, look for the Lehigh links, as below. Clicking on it brings up a screen (scroll down) from which you can access it or you will be prompted to look it up via ASA to see if it is in print, or you can order it via ILLiad. The information necessary to order it will be appear in the ILLiad screen. You can then order a copy of it. You will receive an email with a link to the article. Lehigh will order a copy of the article from another school, or it will scan a copy of it if Lehigh has a copy. Illiad requires a one time set-up.
Use ILLiad on Interlibrary Loan to request a PDF of an article that isn't available at Lehigh or a scanned PDF of a print article that Lehigh owns. You will get an email when the article is ready for download. Interlibrary loan has two flavors, ILLiad but also Palci. Palci is just for books that Lehigh does not have.
You can find books that Lehigh does not own by going to WorldCat, which comes in two flavors.
If you are reading an article or book and come across a citation for an article and want to find its full text, see this video: